The studio took a weekend trip up to the Olympic Penninsula to hike the Hoh River Trail up to Blue Glacier. We set out to have a good time and test out prototype gear; backpacks, wind layers, sun shirts and alpha layers. The plan was to hike in, set up "base camp", sleep, fastpack up to the glacier and back, sleep, hike out. The trail is well kept and is frequented by many people, which leads to lots of bear activity and why you must carry a bear canister.
The trip started with a cruisey 12 miles to camp along the river, full of beautiful old growth rainforest covered in moss and plants living symbiotically. (Having been there before, the rainforest was looking a little dryer than last time. Hopefully that was just due to seasonal diffrences.) We set up camp at a big camp area with lots of sites. The area was mostly full with small groups. Dinner that night was early, as we had 16 miles amd a lot of elevation the next day to get up to the glacier.
We woke up, had breakfast and started our ascent up. The trail was beautiful; passing meadows, lakes, springs, etc. There are two points in particular to note that can get a little sketchy. One being a washed out river creek crossing and the other a large wash out that involves climbing down a rope ladder and then scrambling back up the other side. I wouldn't recommend the latter if you're scared of heights. However, once you do pass these obstacles you'll be above treeline and only 1 mile away form the summit. The rest of the climb up is scree and will generally have you moving slower. At the top you'll have the choice of getting a birds eye view of the glacier or going to a lower point and being able to touch it, both are worth it. After reaching the glacier, we started our descent and got back to camp before it got dark. We took some edibles and hungout around camp that night. The next morning we took down camp, packed our stuff and started heading back to the car.
Overall, the trail is a great intermediate backpacking trip that can be split over two nights. Its packed with everything; a river, rainforest, elevation, bridges, glaciers, wildlife, etc.
